A machine for preparing brewed beverages includes a housing; a collecting vessel station disposed in the housing for receiving a brewed beverage collecting vessel thereon; a brewing water supplying station disposed in the housing above the collecting vessel station; a filter vessel for receiving a filter and a beverage material to be extracted therein; and a filter vessel holder for vertically receiving the filter vessel therein. The filter vessel holder is pivotally attached to the exterior of the housing for rotation between a brewing position in which the filter vessel received therein is substantially disposed between the brewing water supplying station and the collecting vessel station, and a filling position in which the filter vessel received in the filter vessel holder is spaced from the interior of the housing.

A non-fouling liquid level detector and control especially for a sealed system likely to have iron particle contaminants. The device employs a float projecting above the liquid level and bearing above the liquid level a unmagnetized ferromagnetic tell-tale. A magnetic field is generated by a magnet positioned outside the sealed system. The magnetic field extends around the float and tell-tale through a magnetically permeable partition comprising a wall of the sealed system that is positioned between the magnet and the float. The float position is monitored by a magnetic field sensor such as a Hall Effect device positioned adjacent the magnet, outside the sealed system. The sensor responds to the movement of the tell-tale. The output of the sensor is employed to control the monitored liquid level.

A fuel level sensor for use with a vehicle fuel tank includes a magnet carrying float assembly that rises and falls with the fuel level to open and close various magnetically activated reed-switches located at different axial positions along a vertically extending electrical circuit. Activating a reed-switch located at a particular vertical position along the electrical circuit causes the overall resistance of the circuit to depend upon the position of the float assembly. The float assembly is capable of freely rotating about the vertical axis of the electrical circuit and carries magnets producing a horizontal magnetic field that can activate a reed-switch from any angular orientation of the float assembly. Thus, assuming the fuel level sensor is provided with a constant voltage source, the sensor is able to determine the fuel level by the amount of electrical current flowing through the circuit. The electrical current outputted from the sensor is sent to a fuel level gauge which translates the electrical signal into a visual reading, thereby informing an operator of the current fuel level.